Resurgam
by NotJossWhedon
Summary: Sylvanna Monroe has lived for 160 years becuase she was branded by a true demon, an Old One. When news reaches her of the Initiative, her mentor asks her to go to Sunnydale in his stead to take them down. In Sunnydale, she meets a certain blond vampire...
1. Chapter 1

**This is my first BTVS Fanfiction…You've been warned.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own BTVS.**

**Summary: Sylvanna Monroe has lived for 160 years becuase she was branded by a true demon, an Old One. When news reaches her of the Initiative, her mentor asks her to go to Sunnydale in his stead to take them down. In Sunnydale, she meets a certain blond vampire... Chaos ensues.**

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><p>"This is going to get me killed, isn't it?" I glanced over at my fanged companion, who was currently slurping a blood bag like it was a Capri-Sun.<p>

Dorian looked up, licking his lips clean before raising his eyebrows, "Well, that is one way to look at it." He tossed the empty plastic bag to the ground, wrapping his arm around my shoulder and began to steer me to the desk where our weapons lay.

"Fun." I groaned. Dorian chuckled as he began to hand me weapon after weapon; stakes, crossbows, knives, holy water, and two guns.

"Honestly, Vanna, there is no reason that you shouldn't come out of this unscathed…unless you do something extremely stupid, which I'm sure you won't."

I glared, smacking him on the arm, "Thanks for the vote of confidence…" I growled, taking hold of the duffel bag full of weapons.

Dorian followed me as I made my way to the door. "I've known Rupert since he was a boy; I'm the Council's dirty little secret… Rupert asked for my help and currently, I am in no condition to give it." I rolled my eyes; that was the understatement of the century. Dorian had recently gotten into a scuffle with a witch, who was conveniently carrying around a blessed dagger. The man could barely walk with the three inch hole just below his heart. "That's why I'm sending him you." Dorian grabbed my shoulder as I was about to walk out the door, "You can't trust the Slayer."

"Got it." I wanted to get out of here before he got all mushy on me.

"I'm serious, Sylvanna. This is the same little girl that had a thing for Angelus. Apparently something is going on between her and one of the commandos named Riley Finn. She's human and her feelings are going to get people killed." Too late. Dorian pulled me in for a hug; he smelled of peppermint and sugar. He pulled back and just looked at me. Brown shoulder length hair masked the fact that Dorian was missing an ear, a thin pinkish scar crossed his left cheek, (the remnants of his fight with a Slayer in the twenties) trailing all the way down to his sharp jawline and strong neck. He took my face in his hands, kissing my forehead gently, "Be careful."

Dorian was like a father to me; more so than my own father. He'd taken me in after my mother had succumbed to Scarlett Fever and my father left me on the streets of Westminster in 1839, raising me as his own child, never mind the fact that he was a vampire. Dorian had been an exorcist before he'd been turned and offered to begin training me when I turned thirteen. Fighting the Old Ones was what I was good at. The halflings that sometimes escape through the Hellmouth, are a little more tricky; I usually leave them to the Slayer and her band of merry men. I would rather spend my time doing something more interesting things. Like watching _Days of Our Lives._

"You worry too much, Dor." I tried to keep my voice light, "See you around." And with that, I took off for Sunnydale without another look back.

Sunnydale was a good sized town, nestled down in southern California right on top of a hellmouth. How convenient. I could get a nice tan and kill a few demons at the same time. I pulled to a stop across from a cute little house with several cars parked in front of it. "Hmm." I sighed, there was no use in putting this off; I'd have to meet the gang sooner or later. I wished 'never' was an option.

I reluctantly crossed the street and jogged over to the porch, hesitating before knocking three times.

The door opened almost immediately and a rather small young woman appeared in the doorway. Blond hair fell in soft waves past her shoulders, making her face more angular than it seemed. The woman had a small, athletic body, green eyes, and a hell of a lot of power emanating from her. "Can I help you?" She asked politely.

"I'm looking for Rupert Giles. Dorian Clarke sent me in his place."

She raised her eyebrows, giving me an incredulous look, "You're looking for Giles?"

Did I have to say this twice? "Yes; Rupert Giles." I took a chance, seeing as the woman matched the description I'd come across, "Your Watcher?" I prompted.

She blinked before turning halfway around, still managing to block the doorway, "Giles!" Turning back to me, she asked defensively, "Who are you?"

"Sylvanna Monroe," I could barely see a tall, older looking man with glasses coming around the corner of the room, "A friend of Dorian's."

"Ah, you must be Ms. Monroe." Giles offered me his hand to shake. Complete with the tweed, glasses, and proper British accent, this man was a typical Watcher.

I nodded, shaking his hand, "Vanna," I corrected, "What can I do for you, Mr. Giles?"

Giles gently pushed the woman aside to allow me to enter the house, "You'll have to excuse Buffy; she's a bit on edge. Actually, we all are." Giles led me into a small kitchen with an island in the middle, "Did Dorian tell you anything about our…situation?"

I snorted, "He's big on the cryptic, lately."

"Ah. Buffy? Would you like to explain? You're the only one besides Spike who's gotten a look at them." Giles looked to his Slayer, almost pleading.

Buffy sighed, "They're commando's." She shrugged, "They all wore masks and carried big guns. They were taking demons and vampires..." Buffy shuddered, "I'm sorry, but I don't really know much more than—"

"Telly time!" Came a loud yell from upstairs. Giles and Buffy both winced in unison before the yelling continued, "_Passions_ is on! Timmy's down the bloody well! If you make me miss it, I swear I'll—"

"You'll what?" Giles called back with a roll of his eyes, "Lick me to death?"

"Don't ask." Buffy warned, sighing.

"I take it that was Spike?" I looked up to the ceiling. Giles nodded, putting his face in his hands before looking back up to me. I turned to Buffy, "You said that 'Spike' saw the commandos?" Buffy nodded. I glanced at the stairs, "May I?"

"Good luck getting anything out of him…" Buffy said, trailing behind me.

I followed the continuous clang of metal against metal, coupled with a string of curses every few seconds. The sound was coming from the bathroom…from a rather angry looking bleach blond vampire chained to the bathtub. I just stared for a moment, unable to wrap my brain around the fact that a clearly starving vampire was chained to the bathtub and had been shouting about a soap opera just moments before. With my eyebrows raised, I spoke, barely able to keep from laughing, "I take it you're Spike?" The vampire in question glowered up at me.

When the vampire's pure blue eyes met mine, a flash of recognition washed over me. I knew him. I tilted my head to the side, trying to get a better read off of him. Replace the bleached blond hair with brown, perch a pair of glasses on his nose, add a bit of a tan, and typical Victorian era men's wear…William Pratt. This was just eerie. I'd only ever met the man once, at one of his mother's parties… My memory of him was distractingly clear because of how kind he'd been in comparison to the other men that were vulgar and mean.

Forcing myself back into the present, I could clearly see that he was starving. Spike's lips were pale pink and chapped to the point that he would be bleeding if he were human, his eyes and cheeks were sunken in to the point that he was almost grey in some places.

"Are you feeding him?" I asked, glancing back to Buffy and Mr. Giles.

"Er—Rations of pig's blood." Giles answered, glaring at the vampire, "In my favorite mug."

"Hmm." I thought for a moment, going over my options. Eventually, I settled on the most reckless, yet probably most effective option for getting information out of the vampire. "Unchain him." I ordered.

"What? Are you insane?" Buffy exclaimed, "He could kill us!"

"I highly doubt that, Slayer."

"Oi!" Spike exclaimed.

I glanced back at him, "No offense," before continuing with the Slayer, "Spike has information; information that he clearly is not going to give us, unless we give him something in return. And honestly, put yourself in his situation; starving and chained to a bathtub by people that would just as soon stake you as they would shake your hand. Wouldn't you do everything you could to get yourself out of it?"

"Yeah, but Spike is…Spike. He's tried to kill us more times than I can count!" Buffy was trying to make her point through shouting, which wasn't helping anyone.

_Yeah, I wouldn't put that past you, Blondie. _"Me thinks the lady doth protest too much." I sighed, turning to her Watcher, who clearly had the brains, "Mr. Giles, you asked for Dorian's help; a vampire's help. I really don't see the problem." From the confused look on Giles' face, I was going to have to go for a low blow… "Look, you trust Dorian, right?"

"Of course!" Giles said defensively.

"Then how can you not trust the person that Dorian chose to send in his place?"

Looking from Buffy to Spike to me and then back to Spike, the Watcher gave a sigh of exasperation and dug the key from his vest pocket. Buffy was quick to protest, "Giles! What are you doing?"

Giles handed me the key and I bent down to crouch so that I could unlock the manacles. I hesitated when I inserted the key into the lock, looking up into Spike's eyes before leaning down to whisper in his ear, "Believe me when I say that I could easily rip your throat out and do my nails at the same time."

"Got it." The vampire said, impatiently jangling the manacles.

I unlocked the chains, slowly taking the key out while keeping eye contact with Spike, "Don't test me, William."

Distracted by my use of his human name, he squinted at me, "Who are you?"

I smirked, getting to my feet and pulling him with me, "I guess you'll just have to stick around to find out." I took my jacket off, holding my wrist out to him, "Have at it." Looking back to Buffy, I said, "As an answer to your earlier question; I am most definitely insane."

"Oh dear lord…" Giles gasped, eyes wide. Buffy glared at me, silently cursing me for my apparent stupidity. But I knew different. Spike wouldn't kill me because he wanted to know what I knew. Anyways, it wouldn't matter if he drained me dry. I would come back. Immortality was one of the many 'benefits' of being branded by an Old One.

Spike took my wrist gently in his hands, glancing back at me. I nodded once. His face morphed into the demon and his teeth sank into my wrist.

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><p><strong>R&amp;R please.<strong>


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: See Chapter 1 for Disclaimer.**

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><p>Previously on <em>Buffy the Vampire Slayer:<em>

_I unlocked the chains, slowly taking the key out while keeping eye contact with Spike, "Don't test me, William."_

_Distracted by my use of his human name, he squinted at me, "Who are you?"_

_I smirked, getting to my feet and pulling him with me, "I guess you'll just have to stick around to find out." I took my jacket off, holding my wrist out to him, "Have at it." Looking back to Buffy, I said, "As an answer to your earlier question; I am most definitely insane."_

"_Oh dear lord…" Giles gasped, eyes wide. Buffy glared at me, cursing me for my apparent stupidity. But I knew different. Spike wouldn't kill me because he wanted to know what I knew. Anyways, it wouldn't matter if he drained me dry. I would come back. Immortality was one of the many 'benefits' of being branded by an Old One._

_Spike took my wrist gently in his hands, glancing back at me. I nodded once. His face morphed into the demon and his teeth sank into my wrist._

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><p>Now:<p>

Having been bitten by a vampire before, I expected the pain; intense, fleeting, and intoxicating at the same time. Spike didn't tear at my wrist, as keeping my veins in one piece was a key factor in keeping me alive, but I could tell that he wanted to. Not out of brutality, but out of hunger. He kept a gentle yet firm grim on my arm to keep me in place and to give himself the illusion of control.

I waited patiently; it was the least I could do, seeing as Spike was taking his time to spare me pain. Glancing up at Mr. Giles and the Slayer, I could see the disapproving looks on both their faces. "Oh don't look at me like that. I don't have any bloody time to spare, judging from the information I've been given." Jerking my head in Giles' direction, I said, "You know that human blood is the only thing that would help quick enough."

"I can't believe this…" Buffy said with a glare at Giles and me before leaving the bathroom. By the sound of stomping footsteps thundering down the stairs, I assumed that Buffy had gone down the stairs.

Giles looked away from the feeding vampire, saying, "You can't blame Buffy for not wanting to watch you feed a starving vampire; she is the Slayer."

I took a deep breath, feeling a bit dizzy, "I understand. I wouldn't feed just any starving vampire, though. I knew William, here, when he was human…" I tugged a bit on my wrist, waiting for Spike to let go.

Reluctantly, the vampire retracted his fangs, his face slowly fading back into his human-like visage. I smirked a bit; his pallor had already improved. "No offense, love," Spike winked at me, "but I don't exactly remember you."

I took the towel that was hanging over the sink and pressed it to the two seeping wounds on my wrist, "You'll figure it out eventually." After a few seconds, I checked the wounds; they were already scabbed over. "Glad that's over…" I muttered, tossing the towel into the trash.

"Wait a minute…" Spike grabbed me by the shoulder, peering at me curiously, "What are you?"

There was a clamor of voices coming from downstairs. I sighed, "I would rather not explain this a dozen times, so let's go downstairs and make nice with the angry mob."

Giles led the way, apparently bracing himself for the imminent yelling that we were about to be subjected to. Waiting for us in the front room were two people; one young man with dark hair and a young woman with short red hair. From the vibe that I was getting from the redhead, she was definitely a witch but had yet to come into her full power.

Both of them started shouting at once, so I couldn't decipher who said what.

"Spike's out!"

"Oh my God!"

"Giles? What's going on?"

"Who the heck is she?"

"Find a stake!"

At that last comment, I placed myself between Spike and the young man with the dark hair. The boy stopped the stake just before it grazed my skin. I grabbed his wrist in an iron vice-like grip and looked him in the eye, "I don't know who you are and quite frankly, I don't give a damn. But so help me God, if you make another move to hurt this vampire or myself, I'll make you wish that all I did was break your wrist."

"Hey!" Buffy stepped between the human and me, "Back off!"

I raised my eyebrows, waiting, but nothing happened. Buffy slowly put her hand to the young man's, lowering the stake before taking it from him, "Xander…calm down."

When Xander didn't move, Spike prompted, "I'd do it if I were you, Whelp…"

"Is this gonna be your new trademark, Bleach Boy? Hiding behind a girl?" Xander asked, on the defensive. Spike started toward him, but I placed a firm hand on his chest, stopping him in his tracks.

"Enough!" Giles voice rang out loudly and the entire room grew quiet. Looking to Xander, the witch, and the Slayer, he said, "This is my house and Ms. Monroe is my guest. She did not have to help us, but she chose to come in Dorian's place. You will show her respect she deserves. And as for Spike…Don't' kill him."

Spike smirked, "Always knew you liked me, Rupert."

Giles glared at Spike, "…Yet." Taking a deep breath, Giles looked to me, "These are Willow and Xander; they help Buffy with her slaying from time to time." Willow, who looked more confused than anything, waved awkwardly. Xander just glared.

"Since we're obviously not welcome here," I made a point to glare at Xander, "Why don't we get on our way. You can talk while I drive." Spike nodded and I continued, "We'll be back…eventually." Spike made sure to grab his long leather duster before we left.

Less than two minutes later, we were aimlessly driving around the town of Sunnydale until Spike found something that was familiar to him. "So, you gonna clue me in?"

I was confused by his cryptic question, "Sorry?" I made a left turn down a one way street.

"Who are you? Or better; what are you?"

I chuckled; he was exactly the opposite of his human self. "Well, I'm basically human up and to a point…" Keeping one hand on the wheel, I rolled up my jacket sleeve to reveal the brands adorning my wrists; pentagrams framed by a circle, inside of the circle but outside of the pentagram were tiny symbols that I still hadn't deciphered. All I knew was that they belonged to Ipos, the demonic commander of thirty-six legions of hell.

"I take it those aren't tattoos." Spike said as I made another turn.

"God, I wish. But no; they're demon brands. Apparently, my father had made a deal with a demon and sold my soul to pay the price. You'd think that after 160 years, I'd know more than that, but I don't." I turned onto Campus Drive, "You know the saying 'Life sucks, then you die'?" I snorted, "Well, my life is a never-ending suck fest."

"Stop!" Spike shouted suddenly, "This is it!" He was out of the car before I'd put it in park. Once I'd exited, I was able to glance around the college campus. Spike was already sprinting across the grounds, "It's here, I know it's here." I caught up to him when he finally stopped beneath a group of trees. The vampire looked around, almost desperately.

"It's here! It has to be!"

"The Initiative?" I asked to be clear.

"No, Mary bloody Poppins!" Spike dropped to his knees, pounding on the ground, "Open up! I know you're in there!" He started tearing the grass out of the ground, throwing it every which way. "Sneaky little buggers!"

"Spike." He kept tearing at the grass. There was a rustling to our left; several dark figures were shaded by the trees. I couldn't tell what they were, but there were at least six of them. "Spike!"

That finally got his attention, "What?" He snapped, reluctantly getting to his feet.

I grabbed ahold of his arm, to get his full attention, nodding slightly in the direction of the figures, "I think you got their attention." I whispered. Spike's eyes widened as he took in the threat.

"Bollocks."

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><p><strong>R&amp;R please.<strong>


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: See Chapter 1 for Disclaimer.**

* * *

><p>Previously on <em>Buffy the Vampire Slayer:<em>

_What?" He snapped, reluctantly getting to his feet._

_I grabbed ahold of his arm, to get his full attention, nodding slightly in the direction of the figures, "I think you got their attention." I whispered. Spike's eyes widened as he took in the threat._

"_Bollocks."_

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><p>Now:<p>

The figures in black began walking toward us; each had an extremely large gun trained on Spike and me. I sighed, "Why can't I just have a normal day? Just this once?" Apparently The Powers That Tend To Ignore Me didn't have a sense of humor.

The figures continued advancing on us. Spike was tensed, ready to take off, but I had a death grip on his arm, preventing him from going anywhere without me. "They human?" I asked under my breath, knowing the vampire could hear.

He gave me a slight nod, "Yeah…"

"Hostile Seventeen!" The apparent leader of the men barked, "Come with us!"

Spike pursed his lips, "Not bloody likely."

"We have been authorized—"

"Who are you?" I asked, stepping slightly in front of Spike. Being a man, Spike probably didn't appreciate being defended by a woman, but he wasn't exactly in a position to argue if he wanted to make it out of this alive, so to speak. The man didn't respond. "I asked you a question, boy." I tilted my head to the side, waiting for an answer.

One of the other men took out some kind of scanner device and said, "She's registering as human, Sir."

From the dull thu-thump I was hearing, almost like background noise, they were definitely human, confirming Spike's earlier statement. Probably government boys of some kind, judging by the Army issue weaponry and gear. All of the men wore Kevlar, combat boots, and helmets. They had access to some seriously high-tech equipment that could tell what species a person was. The Initiative was watching the college campus above their base. I was willing to bet my right eye that they had a few boys in college…

Turning back toward Spike with one hand on his chest to keep him from doing anything impulsive (although I doubted I could keep Spike could be kept from doing something once he put his mind to it), I said quietly, "This was just about information. We're not here to fight. Yet. We're out gunned; so unless you want to get dead—dead-er—we need to go. Now." I pushed a bit on his chest. Surprisingly he gave.

Until the leader opened his big mouth again. "How's that chip treating you, Hostile Seventeen?"

Spike bristled, curling his lip up. A perfect Billy Idol-like sneer. Surprisingly, he didn't try to go for the men. Removing my hand from Spike's chest, I turned back around, striding toward the 'soldiers' with deadly intent. The leader raised his gun again, "Stop!" He ordered. "I'll shoot!"

"Oh shut up." I seized the barrel of the rifle and shoved the butt of the gun into his face. To say that that the crunch of cartilage was extremely satisfying would be the understatement of the century. The men were all looking to their fearless leader, who was now pancaked out on the ground, stunned from the force of the gun. I bent down to rip his helmet off. He was young, about the right age to be in college… There was absolutely nothing unusual about the young man. I leaned closer, yanking him up by his spikey brown hair, "This is your one and only warning. Disappear. If I ever see you again, I will cheerfully reach in through your stomach and rip out your spine." I released the boy, smiling, "Savvy?"

Eyes wide, he said nothing, just stared. His 'men' followed in suit. Idiots. "What are you?" The leader asked finally.

I smirked, "What I am is none of your damn business." I focused on the blood leaking from the leader's face. Temptation. The blood I'd drawn was intoxicating. Blood is power, and therefore the demonic part of me wanted nothing more than to slaughter them, if just to watch them bleed… I turned away shutting my eyes for a moment. God, I wanted to follow through on my threat! But it would disappoint Dorian if I killed these men just because I could.

I went back to Spike, taking him by the arm and nearly dragging him with me to get away from the fresh blood.

"Those blokes are the same ones that took me." Spike said as he got into the passenger's seat. My knuckles were turning white with the severity of my grip on the steering wheel as I drove away from the college. "You even listening?"

I exhaled tensely, "Sort of." I tightened my grip.

"Breathe, pet." He commanded gently after a moment.

Managing to break my gaze with the hypnotic asphalt we were speeding over, I stole a glance over at the vampire; he stared right back, if not wearily. "I'm fine." I said through my teeth, pulling to a stop at the curb of a deserted street. I threw open the door, practically falling out of the car, trying to catch my breath. The blood. God. I ripped my jacket off, letting it fall to the ground and rested up against the cold metal of the car. It was as if my skin was on fire…

"You're not looking too good, love…" I turned to see Spike standing beside me. I was so out of it that I hadn't even heard him exit the car. How pathetic.

I snorted, "Thanks ever so." I took a deep breath, exhaling through my mouth. _Don't think of the blood. Think of…cheese cake…Gooey, delicious cheese cake…_ Not that I wanted to drink the blood, but blood came from violence. And violence usually led to death in my case; the demon in me reveled in that. I groaned.

"Move." Spike ordered.

I looked up, surprised at his boldness, "Excuse me?"

"I said move. If you think I'm letting you drive like this, you're off your sodding rocker." He pushed me aside, yanking the door to the driver's side open, "Not that I care, but I don't fancy getting any damages because you can't bloody drive!" I remained unmoving, still unsure that I could without ripping off the blond vampire's head. He was infuriating. "Ugh, come on." He took me gently by the arm and led me to the passenger's side, wrenching open the door for me. Maybe it was the exhaustion from denying myself the violence that the demon part of me wanted so badly, but in that moment when Spike held open the door, I was taken back to an earlier time. When things were so simple, yet so complicated…

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><p><em>Then:<em>

_I was so sick of parties. Constant parties. Were these people so dissatisfied with their lives that they had to keep wishing that they had another's? These parties let them do just that, giving the middle class partygoers the illusion that they were wealthy heirs, if only for a few hours._

_It made me want to vomit. I was suffocating in the mass of people. Everyone was asking the same questions; How are you? How is your father? Are you to be married soon? Are you enjoying the party? I got myself through those questions by keeping my answers short, a smile plastered on my face, and by praying that the house should miraculously go up in flames and take all of the insolent, ravenous leeches (otherwise known as the party-goers) with it._

_I practically sprinted for the door (well, as much as you can sprint in a corset) the first chance I was given. Unfortunately, I didn't make it past the threshold. Instead, running straight into something very…human. Looking up, I saw a man of about my own age with curly brown hair and a pair of spectacles mounted on his nose. Oddly, the spectacles made him very attractive, not to mention that the man was strangely handsome in the first place._

_He sputtered an apology, "Oh dear. I'm—I'm very sorry, miss. I—I suppose I should have been paying more attention…" He said something else, but I'd been distracted by his deep blue eyes. "Miss? Are you alright?"_

_I laughed nervously, "Erm, yes. Excuse me." I tried to edge past him, but his eyes followed me._

"_You're going outside? Alone?" The man asked after we'd mirrored positions._

"_I need some air." I smiled in what I hoped to be a reassuring way. I thought for a moment, "Would you care to join me?" There couldn't be any harm…_

"_Well—I suppose." Poor boy; he was so nervous._

_After we'd ventured out onto the wraparound porch, I asked, "This is your mother's party, is it not?" There was no mistaking his eyes with anyone but Mrs. Pratt herself. _

_He smiled in a strained way, "Yes." He folded his arms behind him as we stared off into the night sky._

_I chuckled, "You hate parties, don't you?" I glanced up curiously at him._

_With a bit of a bemused look on his face, he tried to protest, "No! I—Erm…Well, it's not that I don't—" He gave up, "Yes."_

"_Me too." That earned me a surprised look, "They're like popularity contests…Only more brutal." He laughed quietly at that. "I would rather be curled up by the fireplace with a good book anyday."_

_With a bit of a smile, he turned toward me, "What is it you like to read, Miss—I don't believe I know your name…" He blushed slightly._

"_Sylvanna Monroe." I responded with Dorian's surname, as everyone believed him to be my father._

_William took my hand gently and kissed it, "Pleased to make your acquaintance, Ms. Monroe." He murmured shyly. Poor boy; apparently he didn't get out much._

"_You as well, Mr. Pratt." I resisted the urge to wink at him as it would be improper. Dorian would wring my neck if he knew that I was outside with a man without a chaperone. "As for what I like to read…John Keats. I enjoy his poetry very much."_

_A full smile graced his face, "You enjoy poetry?"_

_I smiled back, "More than anything."_

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><p>Now<em>:<em>

On the drive back to Mr. Giles' house, my condition worsened. Shaking, plus a dangerously high fever, plus rage equals a very unhappy Vanna. Spike tried to help me from the car (obviously his Victorian manners hadn't completely escaped him) but I was convinced that I could do this myself.

"Dear God, what happened to her?" The aging Watcher asked after opening the door and ushering us both inside.

"Dunno. One minute she was making with the threats and the next she was looking like she downed a bottle of bleach." The world tilted and I reached out for the vampire to keep my balance. He grabbed ahold of my hand, steadying me; his cold hand felt so good compared to my flaming skin. The change was imminent; I had about as good of a chance of stopping it as I did stopping a freight train.

"I'll be fine." I managed as Spike guided me to the couch, "Eventually."

"Do you know what's happening to you? Has it happened before?" Giles asked rapidly.

"Yes and yes." I took a deep, shuddering breath, barely able to keep my eyes open. "The brands are like a virus; my body is trying to fight them off. But they don't want to leave…The, erm, reaction…" I lost my train of thought. The world was spinning again.

"Vanna." Spike shook me, "Stay awake."

"Where was I?" I asked the two Giles…Two Giles? When did this happen?

"Your brands are like a virus…" The two Giles prompted.

"Right…My body wants to shift, make me stronger…It's better if I pass out; I can't change when I'm unconscious…"

My head lolled forward lazily; it was too heavy for me to hold it up. My limbs felt dead and my eyes drifted shut.

"…take her…don't like…debt…keep an eye on…" Spike was saying.

"…fine…Dorian…kill…safe…" Giles responded.

Everything they were saying was mush. I couldn't sort through the words any more than I could keep my eyes open…I was so tired…Strong arms were picking me up, jostling me gently as they carried me out into the fresh air…And then…There was nothing…

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><p><strong>R&amp;R please.<strong>


	4. Chapter 4

**Sorry for the wait. Internet has been on the fritz since the storm and word is that 'The Middle of Nowhere' is about to get a whole bunch more of the cold, white fluff that miraculously falls from the sky…**

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><p><strong>AN: See Chapter 1 for Disclaimer. Any dialogue you recognize is not mine.**

* * *

><p>Previously on <em>Buffy the Vampire Slayer:<em>

_"…take her…don't like…debt…keep an eye on…" Spike was saying._

_"…fine…Dorian…kill…safe…" Giles responded._

_Everything they were saying was mush. I couldn't sort through the words any more than I could keep my eyes open…I was so tired…Strong arms were picking me up, jostling me gently as they carried me out into the fresh air…And then…There was nothing…_

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><p>I woke to a scream. A blood-curdling scream that ripped right through my soul. I recognized the voice…it was mine.<p>

I clamped my mouth shut, trying to stop so that I could concentrate on figuring out where the hell I was, but my body wasn't having any of that. My screams turned to sobs as the shock wore off and the pain enveloped me. The pain ripped through my bones like fire, tearing at the marrow and trying to rearrange everything, making it wrong. I tried to curl in on myself, to make the pain stop, but my wrists were secured above me with something metal that cut into skin. My sobs stopped, halted by my sudden lack of breath as a sharp pain tore through my chest; my heart was speeding up, trying to keep tempo with my labored breaths. My head pounded with every beat, keeping my thoughts incoherent and jumbled as I tried to remember why this was happening.

The change doesn't happen out of the blue; it has to be fueled by something…fear, violence, blood, rage…

My breathing stopped completely as my muscles ripped themselves apart and stitched themselves back together, stronger and deadlier than ever. My bones were splintering at the same time, causing my body to move of it's own accord. I was just along for the ride… I tore at my wrists; the metal shrieked as it strained.

For the first time, I noticed the soft buzz of a voice in the background of my battling body. I ignored it and continued pulling at the chains. I growled, out of frustration more than pain, as my wrists dislocated; a small price to pay for freedom.

The chains snapped, leaving me to fall onto my hands and knees on the cold stone floor. I could feel the aspect rushing over my face, darkening my veins… There was a quick drumming of shoes on the ground before I came face to face with a pair of dusty black combat boots. I had less than an instant to think before I reached out, taking the man by the leg and throwing him to the ground. The pain was fading now, and I was switching into defense mode. I pinned him beneath me by sitting astride his hips and his arms above his head before I looked the mysterious boot-wearer in the eye. Such pretty eyes…

There was a loud bang and it all came back to me in a rush. Spike, the Slayer, the Initiative…Everything.

I felt someone's eyes on me and slowly looked up to see the Slayer brandishing a rather large sword not a meter from me. "Oh." I said simply.

She raised her eyebrows, and with a slightly amused look on her face, she said, "This is what you needed my help with?"

"Believe me, I've never enjoyed a woman astride me less." Spike said seriously.

Oh. I was still— "Sorry." I murmured awkwardly as I climbed off of him. I stayed on the ground, not sure that I could stand on my own.

"What—" Buffy began before her eyes locked on my wrist and then on the broken chains that were still hanging from the wall. "Spike did you chain her up?"

"I figured I'd better if I fancied staying in one piece…" He said defensively, dusting himself off and rearranging the lapels of his jacket. The vampire offered me a hand to help me to my feet but as I reached for it, he yanked it out of my reach, "You're not gonna rip if off, are you?"

Angered that I hadn't had better control over myself, I kept my eyes on the floor, "No." I said quietly, my throat still raw from screaming. He offered me his hand again, but I ignored it.

"What happened?" Buffy asked, more to Spike than to me.

"She passed out after we got to Giles' place. I told him I'd take her; I owed her one." He ran a hand through his gelled hair, "'Bout an hour or so after we got here, she started clawing at her skin, like she was trying to rip it off." I glanced down; sure enough, angry red marks were scored all over my body. "So I went ahead and chained her up." Spike glanced down at me, "You didn't like that very much." His eyes went back to Buffy, "That was when I called you. Then she started screaming and Hulk'd out, broke out of the chains and pinned me…I thought you said you were human?"

I looked up, noticing a stone jutting out of the wall. I used it to heave myself to my feet and braced myself on the wall, "No; I said that I was basically human." I took a deep breath, trying to calm my still-rapidly beating heart. "That was the part that's not." I cleared my throat, "The blood set it off."

"Blood? Maybe you shouldn't be staying here, then…" Buffy began.

"The _fresh_ _human_ blood; blood that I drew. Usually it takes a lot more than that. Maybe the Hellmouth's got me all jittery or something…" I glanced around for the first time, observing my surroundings with clarity. "Not that it matters, but are we in a crypt?"

"Yup." The Slayer answered.

"Oh." Glancing over at Spike, I offered, "Well, it's posh…for a crypt."

Buffy snorted and left without saying another word.

"It is, isn't it?" Spike was very pleased with himself. He looked to me, "You should see the downstairs; I just nicked a bed." He winked at me, offering me his arm. When I hesitated, he sighed, "What I said earlier—I didn't mean anything by it. If anything, I should be worshiping the ground you bloody walk on for getting me outta Giles' bath…"

I smiled a bit at his attempted apology even though I should be the one apologizing. "We're square, vampire."

Spike looked me up and down, "You look knackered."

"You have no bloody idea…"

Spike led me over to a small hatch in the floor, releasing my arm briefly as he opened it. A ladder led down to what seemed to be a well-lit room. Spike climbed down first, ready to assist me if needed. I took to the ladder slowly, rung by rung keeping my balance up until the final step. I hopped unsteadily to the ground, but Spike steadied me immediately by taking hold of both of my arms. All of the breath went out of me when I saw his eyes flicker briefly down to my lips. I unconsciously licked them, waiting, but Clearing his throat, Spike released one of my arms and began to lead me into a large room.

He was right; the downstairs was very nice. No exaggeration necessary. There was a large, ornate rug covering most of the floor and a few lamps and tables here and there. And there was the bed. It was huge. I wondered how he'd gotten it down here… Glancing back up at him with an eyebrow raised I asked half-serious-half-jokingly, "Did you ever eat a decorator?"

Spike chuckled as he led me over to the bed, "Once. Something must've stuck." I couldn't help but laugh as he drew back the sheet one-handed before gesturing for me to sit. The smirk stayed on my face in light of my present situation. A vampire was tucking me into bed. "Sweet dreams, demon girl…" Spike said as he climbed up the ladder, "I'm gonna go kill something."

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><p><strong>R&amp;R please.<strong>


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: My username is what it is so that I never forget that I am not Joss Whedon. I own Vanna and occasionally Dorian when he decides to grace me with his presence.**

**A/N: Any dialogue you recognize is not mine.**

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><p>Previously on <em>Buffy the Vampire Slayer:<em>

_Glancing back up at him with an eyebrow raised I asked half-serious-half-jokingly, "Did you ever eat a decorator?"_

_Spike chuckled as he led me over to the bed, "Once. Something must've stuck." I couldn't help but laugh as he drew back the sheet one-handed before gesturing for me to sit. The smirk stayed on my face in light of my present situation. A vampire was tucking me into bed. "Sweet dreams, demon girl…" Spike said as he climbed up the ladder, "I'm gonna go kill something."_

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><p>Now:<p>

I was nowhere. I was everywhere. There was nothing. There was everything…

"Sylvanna…" A silky, tempting voice was calling out to me from the darkness. It was as beautiful as it was terrifying. The voice was filled with power, coaxing me to find it… "Sylvanna…"

I took a few steps in the direction it had come from. There was no echo of my footsteps, no sound at all besides the thundering of my heart. I wondered absently if the owner of that intoxicating voice could hear it. "Of course I can, Sylvanna…" It answered my unasked question, seeming to originate from behind me now. "I know everything about you…Your dreams…" Now the voice was coming from my right. "Your fears…" It was whispering from my left. "What you want most…" I spun around, trying to peer through the darkness. Nothing.

"Who are you?" I asked, trying and failing to keep the nervousness from my voice. I took a defensive stance, ready if the owner of the voice decided to attack me, but it seemed to be toying with me more than anything.

Suddenly, someone seized me around the waist from behind me, roughly grabbing my throat and keeping me from twisting in his arms. He smelled of sulfur and jasmine. I struggled, gasping for breath, but in his arms, I was helpless…. "You're mine." He growled roughly, taking hold of my chin. I could feel him smile against my face as he reached up to brace one arm on my shoulders and twist my head to the side viciously, snapping my neck in one fluid motion. My legs gave and he let me drop to the floor. "You will always be mine." I could feel him circling me, even if I couldn't see him.

Out of nowhere, everything began to shake. It was almost like having a seizure, only it was impossible due to my current state of being. I could almost hear him smiling, "Time to wake up." Wake up? What—

I woke with a start, gasping for breath and clawing at the hands that had a death grip on my shoulders. My eyes flew open, but I was too disoriented to focus on anything. Someone was yelling my name over and over…. "Sylvanna! Sylvanna! Can you hear me? Do you know where you are?" The shaking began again and I was able to make out the blurry form a of a certain leather-clad bleach blond vampire…

"Bloody fucking hell!" I finally managed to claw his hands away, "Yes to the first, yes to the second, and since we aren't in the middle of having amazing sex, would you stop yelling my name?"

The vampire visibly relaxed, "I'm startin' to think maybe I shouldn't leave you on your own." I glared up at him, pushing myself into a sitting position. "Every time I do, you seem to get into some sort of trouble!"

I raised my eyebrows, "Trouble? I was just having a bad dream." I rubbed the back of my neck; it ached from the phantom pains…

Spike scoffed, raising an eyebrow while smiling grimly, "You weren't breathing. That's not just a bad dream."

I was still fixed on the previous subject of me getting into trouble, "And hey, you don't get to judge me just because you've known me for what twenty-four—"

He smirked, correcting me, "Forty-one."

I ignored him, "—hours?" Then I realized what he'd said. Forty-one hours since I'd checked in with Dorian…Bugger. "D'you have a phone? I need to ring my, erm, boss…."

"No, but there's one up the block. I'll take you when you can stand on your own." Spike stood, righting his now-wrinkled clothes.

I took it as a challenge, "I'm not a newborn kitten." I threw the covers off and swung my legs out of the bed, determined to show the vampire that I was well enough to make it to the phone. I stood, confident and steady. "Ha." I said smugly, "See? I'm fine."

Spike rolled his eyes, "Take a step."

As soon as I tried, the world went sideways and the vertigo took over. Spike righted me before I could topple over and pushed me back down onto the bed, "Told you so. You need to eat somethin'." Spike disappeared up the ladder for a moment.

As he headed for said ladder, I couldn't help but admire his retreating form. Perfect sinewy muscles encased beneath black cotton. Yum.

Bloody hell. I didn't just think of a vampire as yummy…

When Spike returned, I tried to keep my eyes on the brown bag that he held, but that inadvertently led to me looking at his legs, which led to…other places… Bad Vanna.

"Here." Spike handed me a brown paper bag that read 'Double Meat Palace,' a box of cookies, and a bottle of water. "I didn't know what you'd want…" There was a container of French fries inside of the bag and the cookies were some kind of Oreo knockoff.

"I take it you've done this before."

"Yeah." He smiled sadly, "Dru, my former, was sickly for a bit…" Spike wouldn't meet my eyes.

"I'm sorry." I managed awkwardly, stuffing a cookie into my mouth to prevent further embarrassment.

"I mean, the girl left me for a fungus demon!" He threw his hands up into the air and sat down beside me once more, "Who does that?"

I wasn't sure what to say, as his question was rhetorical, but I wanted to make him feel better. The man looked utterly miserable. I sighed, shoving the box of cookies toward him, "Cookie?"

While I ate, Spike spun me a tale of his crazy ex-girlfriend and the slimy-antlered fungus demon. Not exactly the kind of story that I wanted to hear while I was eating, but beggars can't be choosers, eh? Spike wouldn't take me to the phone booth until I'd walked around the room three times, personally I think the last time was just to piss me off, and drank the bottle of water he'd brought me.

As we approached the phone booth and I swung the glass door aside, I teased him, "You know you make a good nurse, vampire."

Spike scoffed, "I'm a bloody great nurse and you know it!"

After I'd fed the phone a few quarters, I dialed Dorian's phone number. He answered on the first ring, "Hello?"

"Dorian, it's me."

"Sylvanna?" There was a pause as he cleared his throat, "Why didn't you check in when you arrived? You are in Sunnydale, aren't you?"

"There was this thing with—" There wasn't really a point in explaining all of it, "Look, the gist of it is my brands…I set them off. I haven't rang you because I've been unconscious for the better part of two days."

"How did it happen?" I could almost see him pinching the bridge of his nose and shutting his eyes like he always did when he was conflicted.

"Let's just say I did something extremely stupid." I glanced outside at Spike, who was lounging about a foot or so away from the call box with a cigarette in his mouth; the picture of ease…

That earned me a sigh. "Well are you alright?"

"I'm peachy." I rolled my eyes at his concern.

"Are you staying with Rupert?"

"Actually—"

I hadn't even heard him come up behind me. Before I could react, Spike had snatched the phone out of my hand, "Dorian, right? She's stayin' with me." There was a pause before he said, "The name's Spike." Another pause. Spike's features softened as he began to speak seriously as he turned to look straight at me, "Look, I know we've never met, but I love Vanna more than anything else in this world and I'd like to ask your permission to marry her."

Was he screwing with me? He had to be screwing with me.

Once I'd snapped out of the stupor that his words had put me in, I grabbed a hold of the phone and slammed it back into the cradle. I was barely able to resist the urge to grab the bleached vamp by the lapels of his jacket and slam him against the glass. "Are you fucking insane?" I scrambled out of the call box.

"No." Spike took a step toward me, "I'm in love with you."

"Right. Apparently you're not listening to me." I took another step back as he took one forward, "_I don't know you. You don't know me." _I screamed the last bit, "So, how in the bloody hell can you be _in love_ with me?"

He thought for a moment, "That doesn't matter. Nothing matters but you and me."

Spell. This had to be a spell. Either that or a sick joke.

While I was debating about that in my head, Spike took the opportunity to seize my shoulders and smother me with a kiss. A very heated, very passionate kiss. He devours my mouth, kissing me breathless. It's mind-blowing. God. No one has kissed me like this in—well—ever. There's a tiny voice in the back of my mind as I begin to kiss him back, telling me that this is a bad idea. A very bad idea. I should listen to the voice. But I don't. I couldn't form coherent thoughts, much less actions.

He was the first to break away, teasing me, "Got to remember to breathe, love."

Breathe. I'd forgotten to breathe because we were—Oh God. This was definitely a spell. I smiled to keep Spike at ease as I pushed him back a little, "Alright, I think we need to pay Mr. Giles a visit." I take him by the hand and practically drag him over to where he'd parked the car outside of the cemetery, which was a feat in and of itself in my still-weakened state.

He frowns, "Why?" Spike almost sounds like a disappointed child who's gotten coal in his Christmas stocking instead of sweets.

Because he can probably suss out what's going on a hell of a lot better than I can. "Because—" I rolled my eyes, throwing the door open, "Just get in the bloody car."

"Or what?" Spike asks, tongue dancing along the tips of his teeth in an incredibly sexy way. I pulled one of the more intimidating looking daggers out of the bag that Dorian had packed me and brandished it through the passenger's window wordlessly. "Spoilsport." He muttered defiantly as he climbed in beside me. Almost automatically, he took my free hand in his after I'd pulled out onto the road and raised it to his lips, kissing my knuckles. Spike kept a hold on my hand the entire way to Rupert's house, alternating between stroking the back of my hand with his thumb tracing patterns on it with his other hand.

When I pulled into Rupert's driveway, I sprinted to the door, hitting the door with my fist. "Rupert! Rupert! We have a problem!" Spike joined me on the doorstep, taking my hand once again. I didn't bother reacting.

There was a small crash as something glass fell to the ground inside of the house, punctuated by a "Bloody hell!" from Rupert before he ripped the door open and squinted at us, glass of scotch in hand. "What is it, Sylvanna?" I laughed humorlessly and held up our clasped hands so that he could see them. "I'm sorry I don't—"

Spike interrupted him, "We're in love, Rupes."

"No we're not!" I ripped my hand out of his, "It's some kind of spell and Florence Nightingale here, thinks he's in love with me."

"I don't think, I know. And I know because I am." Spike looked at me incredulously, "D'you have to be so bloody difficult, woman?"

"Either it's a spell, or he's gone completely bonkers!" Spike wrapped his arm around my waist, kissing the side of my head. I pushed him gently off of me, looking to Rupert, "Do you see what I'm talking about?

Rupert downed the glass of scotch before answering, "Actually I don't. I seem to be—rather blind…"

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><p><strong>R&amp;R please.<strong>

**A/N: Now that we're out of 'introduction mode,' I think it would be a good time to warn you, dear readers, that from now on, all chapters will be longer and much more graphic (language and description) than the first four. Consider yourselves warned.**


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